Alberttown man charged with dealing ecstasy to students
Following the discovery of a drug ring in at least two city secondary schools, a man was yesterday faced with two charges, including trafficking ecstasy to students.
Darrel John, 25, of Lot 141 Fifth Street, Alberttown, was read the two charges by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan in Georgetown and he was subsequently granted his release on a total of $170,000 bail.
The first charge against John, said to be the owner of a taxi service, stated that on February 12th, at Lot 141 Fifth Street, Alberttown, he had two grammes of ecstasy in his possession.
The reading of the second charge was held in-camera as the listed complainants were minors. It was alleged that between December 1st, 2017 and January 21st, 2018, John trafficked ecstasy tablets to them. The accused denied both charges. Chief Magistrate McLennan later granted the accused $70,000 bail on the possession charge and $100,000 bail on the trafficking charge and adjourned the proceedings until February 22nd.
Stabroek News had previously reported that an investigation conducted by the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU) had found that a group of students were selling the psychoactive drug ecstasy to peers inside Queen’s College and North Georgetown Secondary.
After a Queen’s College student fell sick in January, the source said, an internal investigation was conducted by a school official and the drug distribution ring was uncovered. Stabroek News was told that the police and CANU were called in and further investigations led them to North Georgetown Secondary.
John had previously been sentenced in September of 2016 to 48 months in jail after he was found guilty of unlawful possession of a revolver and matching ammunition. He was released early.